Russia's Mir-2Main articles: Mir-2, Salyut, Almaz, and MirThe Russian Buran Space shuttle would have carried modules up to 30tons to MIR-2. 80-100 ton modules would have used its launcher without the shuttle

The Russian Orbital Segment (ROS or RS) is the eleventh Soviet-Russian space station. Mir and the ISS are successors to the Salyut and Almaz stations. Mir-2 was originally authorized in the February 1976 resolution setting forth plans for development of third generation Soviet space systems. The first MIR-2 module was launched in 1986 by an Energia heavy-lift expendable launch system. The launcher worked properly, however the Polyus payload fired its engines to insert itself into orbit whilst in the wrong position due to a programming error, and re-entered the atmosphere. The planned station changed several times, but Zvezda was always the service module. The station would have used the Buran space shuttle and Proton rockets to lift new modules into orbit. The spaceframe of Zvezda, also called DOS-8 serial number 128, was completed in February 1985 and major internal equipment was installed by October 1986. [62]

The Polyus module or spacecraft, which would have served the same function as Zarya, looked like a "Salyut" slightly modified for this task and was made up from parts of the ships "Cosmos-929, -1267, -1443, -1668" and from modules of MIR-2 station. There are two different descriptions of the weapon systems. In one, Polyus is described as a space-borne nuclear bomber, in another it is described as a satellite interceptor, carrying a 1 MegaWatt carbon dioxide laser. The module had a length of almost 37 m and a diameter of 4.1 m weighed nearly 80 t and included 2 principal sections, the smallest, the functional service block (FGB) and the largest, the aim module. [63]

In 1983, the design was changed and the station would consist of Zvezda, followed by several 90 metric ton modules and a truss structure similar to the current station. The draft was approved by NPO Energia Chief Semenov on 14 December 1987 and announced to the press as 'Mir-2' in January 1988. This station would be visited by the Russian Space Shuttle Buran, but mainly resupplied by Progress-M2 spacecraft. Orbital assembly of the station was expected to begin in 1993.[62] In 1993 with the collapse of the Soviet Union, a redesigned smaller Mir-2 was to be built whilst attached to Mir, just as OPSEK is being assembled whilst attached to the ISS.

Zarya {the first module} was paid for by the United States space agency NASA and was built from December 1994 to January 1998 in Russia at the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center (KhSC) in Moscow.

Yes, got that. I'm a little bit amazed that this was post Soviet era. I remember it being part of the peace talks between the US and USSR in the mid 80's. (Maybe that was late 80's?) I think the NASA shuttles were designed with an international space station in mind. Interesting also that it was American money that paid for the Russian component.

I doubt that very much, considering that the idea was conceived a couple of years sfter the ussr ceased to exist

Are you talking about the ISS? If so, this is wrong. The ISS started as an American space station which began planning during the 80's. Ya_Amerikanyets is correct insomuch as a lot of the basic technology which keeps the ISS in orbit was invented in the Soviet Union. This was because the Yanks were still having trouble developing equivalent hardware (such as a waste recycling system) even in the 1990's, which forced them to negotiate with Russia for access to their technology to be copied.

With the exception of the moon landings, the USSR was the undisputed king of manned space flight during the Cold War. It's pretty laughable that today, American astronauts now have to use Russian rockets developed 50 years ago to get replacement crews to the ISS.

Meanwhile, the Chinese are working on their own space station, also based in part off Soviet technology.

Yeah, but I think that talking about tech origins is to walk a fine line, since scientific advances and technologies are usually not clean-cut - consider how much of the US space program was inspired by nazi rocketry, for instance, yet we don't attribute it to them beyond the fact that von Braun was in charge of both.

(I find the quip about von Braun "The man who aimed at the stars but hit London instead" hilarious, though)

Yeah, but I think that talking about tech origins is to walk a fine line, since scientific advances and technologies are usually not clean-cut - consider how much of the US space program was inspired by nazi rocketry, for instance, yet we don't attribute it to them beyond the fact that von Braun was in charge of both.

You've got an excellent point there. How far back do we want to trace this stuff? Just because some of it links back to ideas developed during the Soviet era.The invention of the rocket engine got the ball rolling, but it might be stretch to give Hero of Alexandria (or Vitruvius) credit for the stuff that's currently flying around up there.